


Pick of the Litter

by actualborealis



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Minor Hange/Erwin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-06
Updated: 2017-09-06
Packaged: 2018-12-24 12:07:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12012378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/actualborealis/pseuds/actualborealis
Summary: In which you've finally convinced Levi to get a dog.





	Pick of the Litter

" _How_ many shelters have you been to?"

You glanced towards your boyfriend, who was crouched down, face as close to the bars as he dared to get it while he inspected yet another prospective addition to your household. His lips were creased into a frown, which you took to mean he was less than pleased. Convincing him that getting a dog was at least a passable idea had taken you the better part of three months. You hadn't really thought about how difficult picking a dog would be - you really didn't think you'd get this far, if you were honest. Your (E/C) hues flitted back to the screen of your phone, where you were video chatting with your best friend Hange. Her hazelnut locks were pulled back out of her face and the light from her phone glared harshly in her dorky glasses.

"Uh... this'll be number four?" you guessed, back pressed to the wall. "He said our getting a dog was contingent upon him finding the perfect one."

"That's our Shorty," Hange said affectionately. "His pretentious nature makes up for his lack of stature."

"Give me the phone." Levi wouldn't take his eyes off the sleeping pit bull, but he held his hand out behind him for your phone. You quirked an eyebrow down at Hange. She shrugged her shoulders, so you wandered over to place the device in the palm of his gloved hand, but you didn't release it completely just yet.

"There is a button to end the call, and I _will_ use it," you threatened, retracting your hand finally.

"Tch," he scoffed at you before bringing your phone up in front of his face. "Listen, Four Eyes. I agreed to a dog. But I'll be damned if that dog gets dander and saliva all over the apartment. Either (F/N) commits to a very strict, very thorough 24/7 cleaning regiment, or I pick the mongrel. And since we all know (F/N) can't adhere to a schedule without getting fucking distracted every five seconds - "

"She tries very hard," Hange interrupted, attempting to sound stern. Levi rolled his eyes. "So what, is there an interview process for the newest member of the Ackerman-(L/N) family? Are you accepting resumes? Hey Erwin!" She leaned her head out of the frame to shout at her own boyfriend, somewhere in the recesses of their shared apartment. "Levi's taking applications for new dogs! Maybe you could help him sort through candidates!"

"Is that so?" Erwin's slightly muffled voice sounded from the hallway. Hange was giggling, and you had to stifle your own laughter, snatching your phone back from a fuming Levi before he could hang up. 

"I'll - I'll call you when he's finally made a decision," you managed, composing yourself enough to blow her a kiss before you ended the call.

At this point, your significant other was four kennels down, hands shoved into his coat pockets while he briefly considered just getting a hairless cat and watching you sulk for a week. You strolled to his side and tugged at his sleeve until he removed his hand for you to hold. His fingers interlaced with yours. You tilted your head up to see his face (grateful, not for the first time, that you were even shorter than he was) and realized something: he wasn't frowning. He wasn't smiling either, but it was the closest you'd seen since you started this endeavor! He was trying very hard not to look interested in this particular canine, but you knew his tells. He couldn't hide it from you.

Your attention turned to the kennel. Sitting right there at the door, almost at attention, tail brushing back and forth against the concrete floor, was the most handsome husky you'd ever seen. His coat was caramel and white, and you adored the little stripe of color hanging between his eyes like he had bangs. You snuck a look at Levi out of the corner of your eye. His jaw had tightened - his whole face wanted to smile, but he absolutely refused. And that was when you knew you had him. 

Or more accurately, the dog had him.

You were filling out paperwork within the hour. Not an hour after _that_ , you were at the pet store for supplies. Levi lingered for nearly twenty minutes in the grooming aisle. He selected an expensive deshedding brush and dangled it in front of your face - "you'll brush his shitty coat every day, (F/N), _every damn day_ , do you hear me?" - before dropping it in the cart, and turning to decide which shampoo smelled the best/least awful. The entire time you were in the store, you kept your arms crossed and a broad smile on your face. He was being adorable, preparing for fatherhood. You might have even told him so if you didn't know he'd berate you for it.

* * *

That night, while Levi ran through his pre-bedtime hygiene routine in the en suite bathroom, you sat in bed with your knees drawn up to your chest and Hange on the screen of your phone again. You recounted the rest of the day for her (the story punctuated by her squealing and gasping in delight). Erwin's face was half in the frame as he was lounged on the couch with her. You could imagine his arm around her shoulders, his feet propped up on the coffee table, just like always. You half smiled. You missed living with them. That was how you'd met Levi, of course; moving in with your college friend Hange and her new boyfriend Erwin. You tenure as their roommate had lasted for two and a half years before you finally moved in with Levi. 

"I keep telling Erwin _we_ should get a pet," your bespectacled friend was saying, rather animatedly. 

"I keep telling Hange she's not allowed to bring work home," Erwin piped up, and the biologist swatted his chest. 

"I'm not going to bring home anything... _overly_ exotic," she tried to defend herself. "It's not like we don't have the room for a snake or two, or four, or - "

"Goodnight, Shitty Glasses." Levi was standing beside you, toothbrush hanging out of his mouth while he leaned over and tapped the red 'end call' button on your screen for you. Approximately two seconds later, you received a text message.

     [ **Hange** **, 9:46 PM**  ] _RUDE!!!_

Snickering, you turned your phone so he could read it and he just rolled his eyes, wandering back to the bathroom to rinse out his mouth. When he returned, he leaned down to kiss you, and left your lips feeling a little mintier than usual. You smiled as he climbed into bed. You silenced your phone, placing it on your nightstand, shimmying down under the blankets. Once he turned the light out, he wrapped an arm around you and drew you against his chest. You tucked your head under his chin. He breathed in deep. Your (H/C) hair smelled like apples; you were using the new shampoo he bought you. His lips twitched upwards.

"Babe?" you asked hesitantly, breaking the peaceful silence.   


"Hmm?" was all the response you got.

"What're we gonna name him?" You couldn't help yourself. You were too excited, having wanted a dog for the majority of your life. Levi's grip on you tightened. It was minute, and it didn't hurt, but you still noticed. He took his time answering you, needing to ensure his voice remained steady.  


"Furlan," he said finally. 

You remembered the first time he told you about his childhood friends, Furlan and Isabel. He didn't bring them up very often, in stark contrast to how much you knew they meant to him. It was about this time of year that their lives were claimed in a terrible collision, back when Levi and Erwin had first met. You thought about the pictures you'd seen and realized just how much that dog really echoed Furlan; the soft caramel fur was much like his dark blonde hair, and that little stripe... just like Furlan's bangs. You exhaled slowly, and smiled.

"Yeah," you agreed. "Furlan."

* * *

The adoption was approved two days later. You got the phone call, but as soon as you realized what was happening, you switched your phone to speaker so Levi could hear too. He paused midchew on a mouthful of your from-scratch pancakes to listen to the congratulatory speech. You gestured for him to hurry up and finish eating, eager to pick Furlan up as soon as possible, and he seemed just as excited, shoveling the rest of his breakfast in. He even elected to leave the washing up for when you got back home. His coat was shrugged on, his feet unceremoniously shoved into some shoes, and he was out the door. You tagged along, turning off lights as you went, tugging your own jacket over your shoulders and trying not to trip on the laces of your Converse. He ushered you into the car with utterances of, "Hurry it up, brat!" 

He drove there, and he drove back - with Furlan riding shotgun. You'd complained at first (in jest), but only received a _tch_ and a promise that he didn't love the dog more than you (yet). You snapped a photo from the backseat and pulled up your messaging app, grinning to yourself.

     [ **(F/N)** **, 10:51 AM**  ] *SMS ATTACHED* L _ook who's riding shotgun!_

   [ **Hange** **, 10:51 AM**  ] _This is the greatest day in all of recorded history. We should celebrate._

     [ **(F/N)** **, 10:52 AM**  ] _ __ What'd you have in mind? _

     [ **Hange** **, 10:52 AM**  ]  _A "welcome to the family" party, complete with cake and streamers. Today. I might have already planned this._

"Hey, short, dark, and grumpy, Hange wants to - " You glanced down at your phone and then back up to Levi's gaze via the rearview mirror, deciding to take the safer route in notifying him of the woman's presence. " - meet Furlan. When we get home."

"Not like there'll be any point trying to fucking stop her," he grumbled. Phew.

     [ **(F/N)** **, 10:53 AM**  ] _Celebration it is._

   [ **Hange** **, 10:53 AM**  ] _FUCK. YES._

Approximately five hours later, you were filming Furlan making an absolute mess of the kitchen with his bone-shaped, doggie-safe cake. Erwin was leaned against the kitchen counter, beer in hand, trying for Levi's sake not to look too amused. Hange was sitting cross-legged on the floor carrying on a conversation with the dog (that he was entirely too busy to pay any attention to). And Levi was leaned in the doorway, his arms folded tight over his chest, a shiny red party hat sitting on his head courtesy of everyone's favorite scientist. He was glowering at you but you only scrunched your nose up at him and put your phone down with a giggle. 

"I never thought you'd get a dog," Erwin said thoughtfully, watching the husky lick his chops once the cake had been demolished.

"I told you I'd wear him down," you said affectionately.

"Tch." Levi actually smiled a little bit. "Hasn't even been here a fucking day and he's destroyed the kitchen."  


"Admit it, you don't mind as much as you thought you would." You picked up your own drink and tipped it against your lips, nearly sputtering in surprise when he agreed with you.

"I guess I don't." He shot Hange a look before she could say anything. "Don't ruin it, Shitty Glasses."

"Wouldn't dream of it, Shorty," she said innocently, reaching out to scratch Furlan's ears. His tail wagged something fierce. 

* * *

That night, you hopped up on the bathroom counter, legs dangling above the floor while you watched Levi run through his skincare system. He kept glancing at you in the mirror. You were watching him closely, and he seemed to know exactly what you had in mind before you did. 

"He's not sleeping on the bed."

"But - "

"Not a chance in hell, (F/N)."

"I'm sure we'd barely even know he's there!" you protested.

"He'll get his shitty undercoat all over the sheets. Absolutely not." Levi shook his head in disgust. "We bought him his very own bed, spent a fuckton of money on it, he can fucking use it."

"What if he gets lonely?"

"Lone - (F/N), he'll be in the same damn room!" He was exasperated. "I said no."

"Okay, but I said yes," you pointed out with a devilish smile. He frowned at you.

"This isn't a democracy. It's not happening." 

Before you climbed into bed for the night, Levi took some time to drag the dog bed closer to yours just to lessen your complaints. He called Furlan upstairs and patted the plush cushion to coax him to lie down on it, but the husky apparently had other ideas. His muscles coiled and he sprung up onto the mattress at your feet, sprawling himself out. Levi stared in disbelief, looked up at you, and then stared at Furlan for a minute longer. He threw his arms in the air.

"Fine. Fine! Fucking fine." He slipped under the duvet with you, maneuvering his feet around the canine. The lights were turned out, the bedroom plunged into darkness. All you heard for several minutes was the sound of breathing from both your partner and dog. Levi broke the quiet to tell you, "Just for tonight, (F/N)." 

"Sure thing," you replied as you settled in, a shit-eating grin lighting up your face.

You both knew he was _completely_ screwed.

**Author's Note:**

> For my regular readers: I'm on Twitter now! Same username. I'm happy to take requests there, and I'll likely post updates and ask for opinions as well. Would love to hear from you guys! xx


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